To consider the draft Council Business Plan for 2023 to 2027 which sets out how the Cabinet intends to deliver the Community and Corporate Plan and to make recommendations to the Cabinet.

The Board considered an early draft of the Council’s Business Plan 2023-2027 which was the delivery plan for the Community and Corporate Plan, as part of its Policy Development Role to help shape the Plan.  It was noted that the draft Business Plan had also been shared with Group Leaders via Council Leadership Group meetings.  In developing the draft Business Plan the Cabinet had considered the recommendations arising from the Priorities and Resources Review but that four of the recommendations had not been included.

The Board raised issues in relation to the layout of the document; what more could be done to support community centres and play parks; inclusion of reference to Operation Town Centres and Operation Brighter Bay; work with Vision Zero; lack of detail within the document; limited reference to social housing and social rented housing and the housing crisis; the number of homeless people including an equal number of women and men; the Acorn Centre funding; the same projects being in the Plan from previous years and how performance would be measured.

Members noted a recent proposal for the Cabinet Members particularly engage with smaller groups of Councillors which would help them to inform the document further.

Resolved (unanimously):

That the Cabinet be requested to consider the following revisions to the draft Council Business Plan for 2023-2027:

1.         to include within the narrative about the housing crisis;

2.         to include the current numbers so that performance can be measured against them;

3.         to amend the presentation style to include the milestones, actions and outcomes under each one for example Community and People – ‘Ensure our town centres are safe and welcoming for all’ as a heading and to list actions underneath, followed by milestones and then outcomes;

4.         to include under Pride in Place - ‘Protect and enhance our lived, built and natural environments, including a green spaces’ milestones on how the Council is we going to deliver that including strategically enhancing the whole of Torbay by (1) Initiate Operation Brighter Bay, (2) tidier streets etc.  (3) Implementation of Operation Town Centres;

5.         to include how the Council reviews key performance indicators, for example grass verges (number 24 – deliver cleaner, tidier streets and attractive parks – this should include grass verges number of cuts for residential areas and number of cuts for primary areas etc. and also to consider a Public Spaces Protection Order (PSPO) to cover parking on grass verges;

6.         to reconsider how the following recommendations could be addressed within the draft Council Business Plan arising from the Revenue and Capital Budget 2024/2025 – Report of the Overview and Scrutiny Board following the Priorities and Resources Review:

“8.        that a plan be developed to address how the Council and its partners can work with Torbay’s community centres, to help support them with their maintenance so that they don’t end up in crisis and this is brought back to the Overview and Scrutiny Board for consideration; and

11.       to ensure that the review of play parks secures their future sustainability and additional funding options be explored such as Olympic legacy funding, existing funding opportunities and grants which could help replace assets such as the Victoria Skatepark working in partnership with organisations such as Sport Torbay.”